


butterfly effect

by NalaxSimba



Series: butterfly effect series [1]
Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon Rewrite, F/M, Gen, Zuko Joins The Gaang Early (Avatar), Zuko is an Awkward Turtleduck
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-09
Updated: 2021-02-09
Packaged: 2021-03-15 20:35:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,693
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29320260
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NalaxSimba/pseuds/NalaxSimba
Summary: the butterfly effect: the scientific theory that a single occurrence, no matter how small, can change the course of the universe forever. also known as, the time Zuko doesn't run from the date with Jin, and somehow ends up joining the Avatar and his team, with her by his side.
Relationships: Iroh & Zuko (Avatar), Jin/Zuko (Avatar), The Gaang & Zuko (Avatar)
Series: butterfly effect series [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2153691
Comments: 20
Kudos: 51





	butterfly effect

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own ATLA, or gain any profit from this fanfic.
> 
> This idea would just not leave me alone. It combines two of my favourite tropes: Zuko joins the Gaang early, and Jin and Zuko get to develop their relationship. This is the first part of a series--this fanfic will go up to the Book 2 finale, and then the sequel fic will be a rewrite of Book 3 with Zuko and Jin joining the Gaang.  
> This starts from Zuko's date with Jin, and then we'll go there from there, ending with Crossroads of Destinies. I plan to upload a new chapter of this at least every two weeks.

"I can't believe it. They aren't lit."

Her face fell sadly, and for some reason, Zuko wanted nothing more than to make her smile again.

  
He didn't know why he had this feeling within him. As far as history, the hierarchy, society--everything, really--was concerned, the two were opposites. 

  
She was a peasant girl; he was the Crown Prince.

  
He was a Firebender, and he was _confident_ she was a nonbender.

  
She was from the Earth Kingdom, and he was from the Fire Nation. 

  
They were opposites, enemies, two sides of the opposing war.

  
But, he knew that as far as she was concerned, they were similar. She knew nothing about him, and that made her treat him like a normal person.  
Zuko had only known her for a few hours, but something inside told him that even if she knew that he was royalty, she would still treat him as a normal teenager.  
Usually, that would irk him. He was a Prince, and he deserved to be respected as such! Maybe Uncle's beliefs had finally started to get to him, but he liked that she treated him like another person. No whispers or judgements because of who he was. No attempts to kiss up to him or get into his good graces solely because of who he was. And she never mentioned his scar. Many people made assumptions about the pesky fault and treated him as fragile and broken because of his disfigurement. 

  
She didn't.

He made his choice. "Close your eyes. And don't peek."

  
Jin grinned at him, a grin that shone brightly in the dark night. She covered her eyes with her hands; Zuko glanced at her, as if looking for any signs of peeking.   
She seemed to trust him completely. 

  
Zuko took a deep breath and quickly glanced around for anyone who would spot them and rat him in. He was risking everything for this girl--imprisonment, death, his Uncle's safety--to make her happy.

  
_'Please, don't peek.'_ The thought crossed his mind as he readied himself, standing in position. _'You'll treat me differently if you do.'_

He moved quickly, trying to speed this up to ensure nobody could catch him in the act. They would arrest him, they'd make a scene-- _like Jet did just a day earlier_ \--and Jin would see, and she would be even more disappointed.

  
That thought hurt Zuko the most.

  
The orange sparks shoot from his fingertips, and a part of him was ecstatic to Firebend again, despite the damage it could cause. Firebending was a part of him; it was in his blood--it's what makes Zuko, Zuko. He might not be as skilled as Azula, but he was a Firebender, and the months hiding in Ba Sing Se when he hadn't been able to Firebend had been awful.

  
He dreamed of when he could return to the Capital, showing off his new flashy Firebending practices to his father and elders, and finally catch up to Azula. 

  
And he's Firebending for the first time in months--a simple gesture, all done to impress a girl he just met. 

It only took a few seconds to light up the lamps. He momentarily glanced at his handiwork, then looked back at Jin. 

She was still hiding her face. 

She trusted him.

"Okay," his voice came out barely above a whisper, "Now, you can look."

She moves her hands from her face, and her face lit up in joy. She could only respond with an amazed, "Oh, wow..."

For the first time in a long time, Zuko truly felt proud, accomplished and _appreciated_. 

* * *

  
_'He's a Firebender.'_

The thought crossed Jin's mind almost immediately. 

It was the only explanation she could come up with at the moment: how else would she explain the lamps suddenly lighting up? What, the Spirits felt terrible about her date and did it for her?

  
Not many people in Ba Sing Se knew about the war. There had been times when those from the Upper Ring would visit the Lower Ring--school trips, tourist attractions, visiting the 'local culture', she'd heard those excuses all before--and they had never mentioned the war. They were met with confusion when people did mention it and then shook the worries off with, _"Ah, how silly, making up stories like that."_

She quickly learned that the people born into Ba Sing Se had always been born into the safety of the walls, and Jin very slightly resented those who were that lucky. She had heard the hushed whispers about the conspiracy, that the Dai Li made sure to keep the war a secret. Her father believed that--he visited the Upper Ring once to collect the best stock for his market and he told Jin all about how he felt as though the Dai Li watched him and how they seemed suspicious at best. 

  
_"Don't mention the war, Jin." He made her promise as he combed her hair. "It's safer and better if we forget."_

But Jin knew, and she had always known about the war. Her family were refugees from the war; the Fire Nation had overtaken their village years ago, and they had fled to Ba Sing Se for safety. Jin had only been young--the memory was only really kept alive because of her parents.

  
But she quickly learned that Ba Sing Se wanted to hide the war from the citizens for as long as possible. They couldn't keep everyone quiet; there were thousands upon thousands refugees in the city, but they were all shunted into the Lower Ring. Jin was a smart girl--she guessed that the reason why so many refugees lived in the Lower Ring was to keep all those 'damaged' from the war in one place, to stop them from ruining those that had the privilege of not being war-torn.

Realistically, she should hate Lee for his bending.

  
But she didn't. She couldn't bring herself too; he had risked everything to firebend for her, he was sweet, and she liked the guy. Maybe she was letting a crush for a handsome boy cloud her judgement, but he seemed like a nice person. She wasn't going to pry into his personal life at the moment: being a firebender in the Lower Ring would definitely make him an outcast (at best) and possibly killed at worst. 

_'He must have defected.'_ She jumped to the conclusion quickly and immediately settled on it. Surely, not everyone in the Fire Nation was bad? 

  
It hadn't been Lee that had stormed her village and taken over. Based on his age alone, he must've only been a toddler. He wasn't guilty of his nation's crimes--the same way she didn't get respect for her nation's achievements.

  
Lee smiled at her, and Jin played along, pretending not to know about his power. "What happened? What did you...?"

Lee just smiled at her, and Jin returned the smile with one of her own.

They stared at the lights for a while, before Jin felt the small bubble of courage bubbling in her chest. 

He had done this for her.

Call her a hopeless romantic (her father sure did), but Jin really liked this guy. 

She slowly slid her hand into his. He didn't move away--instead, he seemed to grasp her hand slightly.

Jin moved in to stare into his eyes-- _gold_ , she noticed, _fitting for a Firebender_ \--when he suddenly lifted a coupon between them. Jin felt the courage slowly slipping away. Damn it, Lee!

"I brought you something," he said quickly, holding tightly on to the coupon as if the coupon was going to protect him from the girl. "It's a coupon for a free cup of tea."

"Lee, this is so sweet." 

"Don't thank me. It was my Uncle's idea." Lee glanced away from her. "He thinks you're our most valuable customer."

"Your uncle is a good teacher," Jin teased. She smirked at the blush that started growing on his cheeks. A few moments of silence passed between them before she gingerly pressed her hand against his cheek and turned him to face her. "I have something for you too. Now it's your turn to close your eyes."

For a moment, his eyes wavered, and she thought he would refuse.

"..Okay." He breathed softly. He glanced at her one more time before closing his eyes.

Jin triumphantly grinned, plucked up all her courage, and leaned up to kiss his soft, tempting lips.

_'Spirits, I'm begging you, let him kiss back.'_

* * *

If Jin could read minds, she would hear Zuko internally screaming. 

_'AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA WHY IS SHE KISSING ME WHAT AGNI HELP HELP HEEEEEELPPPPP--'_

...it was a good thing Jin couldn't read minds.

  
But Zuko had to admit; he liked this. 

Jin wasn't (technically) his first kiss. Mai was, back when they were children. Did that even count? The kiss had happened at a Fire Nation ball, in front of spectators and his parents and Azula...it wasn't the type of first kiss he thought he'd have.

But for some reason, kissing Jin felt more acceptable. Nobody was watching. He could kiss her, and as far as anyone else would see, he would be a normal teenage boy, on a date, living a normal life, with an uncle who loved him as family should, and a girl who was attracted to him, and he was attracted to her too--

His internal scream stopped. The truth hit him like an explosion.

He had a life here.

Was it too bad to ask for a normal life? Even if it was just for a little bit?

And so, Zuko kissed her back.

Jin moaned into the kiss, causing Zuko to blush, as he wrapped his arms around her waist and she wrapped hers around his neck. They didn't stop--in fact, the kiss only grew, and Zuko felt her hands tighten around his neck.

"Mmm, Lee..." she moaned into the kiss.

That pulled him out of the kiss.

He was attracted to her, but he couldn't be this intimate with her while living a lie. 

"What's wrong?" Jin asked, her hair slightly tousled from the make out.

"I'm sorry," he said as he pulled away. "I can't...not right now."

Jin's shoulders fell, and he saw the pained expression on her face.

"I like you," he said, wanting to reassure her. "It just feels..." he raked his mind for an excuse. "...wrong to do this on the first date. My uncle instilled that value in me."

It was a lie--Uncle would probably be cheering him on--but he had to tell her something. 

Jin's face was still disappointed, but she perked up slightly. 

"I'm sorry..." she apologised, glancing away from him for a moment--her tousled hair fell in front of her face. "I can be very pushy at times."

Zuko tucked the hair behind her ear. "...I really enjoyed tonight."

Her spirits lifted slightly at that. "I'm glad you did, Lee. I did too."

"...can I walk you home?"

She nodded her head eagerly. 

* * *

The walk home was quiet but pleasant. Jin slipped her hand back into Zuko's, and--to her surprise--he let her, and he held her hand tightly all the way home. She slowly led him to her house, wanting to hold onto his hand for as long as possible.

  
His hand felt so warm. _'Probably a firebender trait.'_

  
She wanted to talk to him about his firebending more--to let him know that he could trust her with his secret, that she still liked him despite his power--but she didn't want to pry into something so personal.

  
_'How do I even a bring a topic like that up?'_ Jin mused, losing herself in her thoughts. _'Oh, hey Lee, I know you're a firebender? He'd run for the hills. What about "Lee, I know you're a firebender, but don't worry, I don't care." This is all too confusing!'_

Lee playfully nudged her, pulling her from her thoughts. "You're quiet."

  
"Lost in thought," she teased him. "I was just comparing this date to my last."

  
Ever awkward, Lee sputtered--and Jin guffawed. "I'm kidding! You were much better than the last one, anyway."

  
Lee turned from her, face bright red, but his hand tightened around hers.

By the time she had an idea of what exactly she wanted to say regarding his powers, she had arrived at her doorstep. 

"This is my stop," Jin said with a small smile, somewhat disappointed that she was finally leaving him.

Lee glanced up at her house. "It's nice."

Their hands remained intertwined. Neither wanted to let go.

"Can I...see you again?" Surprisingly, Lee was the one who asked the question. The same question had been plaguing on Jin's mind, but she was quite surprised that he was the one to ask.

She held up the coupon he had given her. "Don't you owe me a free tea?"

Lee smiled back. "See you at the teashop tomorrow?"

"Of course," she spoke slowly and quietly, the definitive answer making everything feel so real. He'd always just been the cool, handsome tea server, the one she watched and admired from afar. Asking him out the first time had needed all her courage, but now that she knew she would see him again, butterflies flew in her stomach.  
Lee pulled their hands apart. 

Jin turned away from him and reached for the door handle. 'This would be the perfect time to speak,' she thought, her eyes shut as she debated with herself. 'I can tell him I know.'

"Thank you for tonight," Jin said softly, "I really appreciated it. I'm glad I got to show you the fountain."

"You're welcome," Lee said, a small smile on his face. "I'm glad I got to see it."

Her time was slipping away.

"...thank you for lighting them," she said quietly. Part of her hoped that he didn't hear.

The spirits weren't on her side, because he immediately reached for her and gently tugged her so that she was looking at him. "What did you say?"  
Her brown eyes met his gold ones.

"I know you lit them," her voice was barely above a whisper--both to keep his secret and to try and avoid the harsh reality. "I know you're a Firebender."

He continued to glance at her, his eyes softening slightly. "..and you didn't run away? You're not scared?"

She should be scared of his power, of what it meant.

But she wasn't. And she couldn't fully explain it just yet, but she just knew that he was good. Something in those beautiful, gold eyes assured her. 

"No," she stared him down firmly, hoping her determination and strength conveyed to him. "I'm not."

"But...why?" He sputtered. "I'm a Firebender. I could use my power to hurt you and--"

She rested her hand on his shoulder. "And you didn't. You used it to make me happy. You aren't the Fire Nation. Their sins aren't yours." 

He smiled softly, and the butterflies somersaulted in her stomach.

She stood on her tiptoes and pressed a quick kiss to his cheek. "Good night, Lee."

And before he could speak, she had rushed into her home--not to avoid him, but to avoid her own beating heart. 

* * *

Their conversation relayed in his mind the whole way home. 

_You aren't the Fire Nation._

_Their sins aren't yours._

In the three long years since his banishment, he'd never met anyone who treated his Firebending with such tenderness. People treated him with disdain and resentment, and only when his bending was kept a secret did he genuinely feel accepted--and even that didn't last long, as soon as the village found out they turned on him.

  
Jin didn't. She treated him with kindness even after finding out. She wanted to see him again. 

_'I'm so stupid,'_ he chided himself. _'I never should've lit the lights with Firebending.'_

But seeing Jin happy was worth it. 

"How was your night, Prince Zuko?" Uncle asked when Zuko came through the door. 

Zuko stopped it in his tracks, as he mulled the question over in his head. 

"...it was nice."


End file.
